The key indices of the Indian equities market, the Sensex and Nifty, fell by around 2% on Monday, leaving investors with a loss of around Rs 4 lakh crore as IT and banking stocks fell after sector heavyweights Infosys and HDFC Bank reported disappointing financial results. The 30-stock S&P BSE Sensex fell 1172.19 points, or 2.01%, to 57,166.74 points after closing at 58,338.93 points the previous session.
After a four-day holiday, the Sensex began trading on Monday sharply lower at 57,338.58 points and fell to an intra-day low of 56,842.39 points. The key indices have fallen for the fourth day in a row. The Sensex fell 237.44 points, or 0.41 percent, on Wednesday, its last trading day.
The broader Nifty 50 of the National Stock Exchange fell 302 points, or 1.73 percent, to 17,173.65 points after closing at 17,475.65 points the previous session. The Nifty opened sharply lower at 17,183.45 points and fell to a low of 17,067.85 points during the trading session. IT stocks were under intense selling pressure. Infosys’ share price fell 7.27 percent to Rs 1621.45. The drop in the share price of Infosys is the steepest in two years.
Tech Mahindra fell 4.69 percent to Rs 1344.25, while Wipro fell 3.67 percent to Rs 538.75. TCS fell 3.63 percent to Rs 3528.45, while HCL Technologies fell 1.99 percent to Rs 1102.75. HDFC Bank fell 4.74 percent to Rs 1395.35, while HDFC fell 4.81 percent to Rs 2263.05. The stock of State Bank of India fell 1.57 percent to Rs 509.40.
Reliance Industries, the index’s heavyweight, fell 0.33 percent to Rs 2544.15. Only ten of the Sensex’s thirty constituent stocks closed in the black. NTPC increased by 6.11 percent to Rs 163.30. Tata Steel gained 1.51% to Rs 1339.20. Maruti Suzuki’s share price increased 1.37 percent to Rs 7574.55. Among the major Sensex gainers were Titan, Hindustan Unilever, Mahindra & Mahindra, Power Grid Corporation, and Nestle India.
